Chapter 6
Workflows
Tasks are the bricks, a workflow is the blueprint: several tasks linked into a process that runs on its own, from meeting bots and AI tasks to approval and delivery. This chapter builds one real workflow, the Morning AI digest, video by video: create it, arrange it on the graph, run steps in parallel, branch, run and approve, schedule it, read its history, then manage it.
The last three videos cover Templates: pre-built workflows where you only fill in accounts and a spreadsheet, including two real runs with Gmail and Google Sheets.
12 videos · 26:34
A task is one job StepX does for you; a workflow chains several tasks into a process that runs on its own. This video walks the Workflow page: the How it works card, each workflow card, filters, the Templates button and which plans include it.
Use it when: Before your first workflow, or when explaining to a colleague how workflows differ from tasks.
Steps
- 1A task is one job StepX does for you. A workflow chains several tasks into a process: meeting bot, AI task, approval, then delivery.
- 2Three steps: create a workflow, add tasks and link them into a graph, then run it by hand or on a schedule and follow every run.
- 3Each card is one workflow: status, task count, how it starts and its last run. The three-dot menu opens, pauses, edits or deletes it.
- 4With many workflows, search by name, filter by status, or by how they start: on a schedule, by hand, or schedule switched off.
- 5Top right: create a workflow from scratch, or use a ready-made template to build a whole process at once. The Guide button opens these videos.
- 6Workflows belong to paid plans: the Free plan sees a locked page and a View plans button. Each plan also caps how many workflows you keep.
Good to know
- Workflows belong to paid plans: the Free plan sees a locked page with a View plans button.
- The Scheduled / Manual / Schedule off chips only appear once the list has at least two ways of starting.
Outcome: You can read a workflow card (status, task count, schedule, last run), filter the list and know the two ways to start: from scratch or from a template.
Creating a workflow only needs a name and a description; tasks are added right on the graph. This video creates a new AI task from the plus next to Start, then adds an existing task that runs after it.
Use it when: When starting a new process: a digest, a recurring report, email handling.
Steps
- 1Click Create workflow, give it a name and a one-line description so the team knows its purpose. Tasks come next.
- 2The graph starts with a Start node: every run begins here. The plus beside it adds the first task.
- 3Two ways: create a new task right here, or pick one the organization already has. Create one first and choose AI task.
- 4The editor is the same as on the Tasks page, plus a Run after section at the bottom. With no other task yet, this one is a root and starts with the run.
- 5The plus to the right of a task adds a step after it. This time pick an existing task: Email the digest via Gmail, built in the Tasks videos.
- 6Run after is pre-ticked. The previous task's result is the next one's input: the AI digest becomes the email body.
- 7Click a task to see its details on the right. One task can live in several workflows; editing it anywhere applies everywhere. Next video: working on the graph.
Workflow name: Morning AI digest
Task 1 (new): Today's top AI news — AI task with web search on
Task 2 (existing): Email the digest via Gmail — Run after: Today's top AI news
Good to know
- The previous task's result is the next task's input; the Run after section in the editor decides that.
- One task can live in several workflows; editing its settings anywhere applies everywhere.
Outcome: A two-step workflow: an AI task finds news, then the result goes out via Gmail, ready to run.
Every arrangement happens right on the graph. This video inserts a step between two steps, adds one after the last, removes and re-draws a link by dragging, tries a cycle that gets refused, undoes, and uses the zoom toolbar.
Use it when: When the workflow already has a few steps and you need a processing step in the middle or a different order.
Steps
- 1Hover a link: the plus inserts a task between two steps, the cross removes the link. Insert a shortening step before the email goes out.
- 2The new task sits in between: it takes the raw digest, returns the short version, and the email now receives that. Every link is rewired automatically.
- 3Add after the last task the usual way: pick the existing Log to Google Sheet task, so every sent digest gets a log row.
- 4Remove a link with the cross: the task becomes a root. Reconnect by dragging from the right-hand dot to the other task's left-hand dot.
- 5The graph refuses cycles: a task cannot run before one it depends on. StepX rejects the link and says why.
- 6Slipped? Undo: every change on the graph can be reversed, and Redo brings it back. The shortcuts are the ones you know from editors.
- 7The toolbar zooms in and out, fits the whole graph and toggles a minimap for large workflows. The mouse wheel zooms too.
Good to know
- The plus and cross on an edge are easiest to hit after you click the edge to select it.
- Undo and Redo cover every change on the graph, with the shortcuts you know from editors.
Outcome: A four-step graph linked in the right order; you can insert, connect, unlink and undo without fear of breaking it.
The plus above or below a task creates a parallel task. This video adds a second news task that runs at the same time, then links both into the shortening step so it waits for both results.
Use it when: When several sources should be processed independently and then merged: several news topics, departments or data tables.
Steps
- 1The plus above or below a task adds a parallel task: it runs after the same previous steps, without waiting for its sibling.
- 2Create a second AI task for local news. The two roots now share one layer and start together when the run begins.
- 3Drag the new task into the shortening step. A step with several incoming links waits for all of them, then takes every result as input.
- 4In the detail panel, Run after lists the steps that must finish first. Edit lets you change that list with checkboxes too.
- 5The plus at the end of the graph adds a step after every last task: handy for a shared wrap-up step. Not needed here.
Good to know
- A step with several incoming links waits for all of them and takes every result as input.
- The plus at the end of the graph adds a step after every last task, handy for a shared wrap-up.
Outcome: Two root tasks run in parallel with a merge step after them; you can read Run after in the detail panel.
A condition checks the previous result; the steps after it pick the True, False or Always branch. Approval pauses the run for a person. This video adds both and changes branch labels right on the edge.
Use it when: When only some results should continue, or when a person must check before the sending step.
Steps
- 1A condition checks the previous result. Here: does the digest open with the word IMPORTANT. The condition itself does not branch; the steps after it pick a side.
- 2When you add a step after a condition, the menu asks Only when: always, condition met, or not met. Pick met: only important news goes to the CRM.
- 3The label on the link shows the branch. Click it to switch between True, False and Always without opening the editor.
- 4Insert an Approval step before sending. The run pauses here until someone in the organization approves, and only then sends the email.
- 5After Approval there are two branches: Approved and Rejected. An unlabelled link means approved; a rejection with no branch of its own simply skips the later steps.
- 6The whole picture: two news tasks in parallel, a shortening step, then two paths: a condition pushes important news to the CRM, and approval leads to email and a log row.
Good to know
- After Approval an unlabelled link means Approved; a rejection with no branch of its own skips the later steps.
- Click the True/False label on an edge to switch branches without opening the editor.
Outcome: A graph with two paths: a condition pushes important news to the CRM, approval leads to email and a log row.
Click Run workflow and a run is created and opened at once: the same graph, each task with its own status. This video follows two parallel tasks, approves at the Approval step, sees the email land in the inbox and reads each step's input, result and cost.
Use it when: Right after building the graph, to make sure each step produces what you need before scheduling it.
Steps
- 1Click Run workflow. A run is created and opened at once: the same graph, but every task now carries its own status, refreshed every few seconds.
- 2The two news tasks run at the same time, just as the graph shows. Later steps wait until the ones before them finish.
- 3At the Approval step the run pauses and waits. The panel shows what needs approving, here the short digest, with Approve and Reject buttons.
- 4Write a short reason and click Approve. The run continues down the approved branch: send the email, then log it. The approver and note are stored on the run.
- 5The email is already in the recipient's inbox: the short digest, sent from the connected Gmail account, the moment the run passed the send step.
- 6The digest had important news, so the condition passed: the CRM branch ran and the webhook received the digest. On a quiet day this branch is skipped and the run still succeeds.
- 7Click any task to see its input, result, cost and duration. The email step tells you who it went to, with the message id.
- 8Run finished: the Finish node adds up the total cost. While a run is live, Cancel run stops the steps not yet started; a step already running is still charged.
- 9Close it, and the graph remembers each task's last run. Next video: scheduling automatic runs.
Good to know
- A branch that is not taken shows Skipped and never fails the run.
- While a run is live, Cancel run stops the steps not yet started; a running step is still charged.
Outcome: One run succeeded end to end; you can read each node's panel and the total cost on the Finish node.
The trigger decides when a workflow runs on its own. This video sets a weekly schedule, looks at the interval kind for polling several times a day and the one-time kind for dated events, then switches the schedule off while keeping the setup.
Use it when: Once the workflow runs fine by hand and you want it to fire on time by itself.
Steps
- 1By default a workflow only runs when you click. Click the Manual line under the title to set a schedule, called a trigger.
- 2Weekly: pick the weekdays, a time and a timezone. Once saved, StepX shows the next run right away, in the header and on the list card.
- 3Every N hours suits polling jobs, like reading an inbox: it repeats every few hours inside a daily window. Remember a short interval means more runs and more credits.
- 4One-time: runs at one moment and then switches itself off, good for dated events. The moment must be in the future.
- 5To pause without losing the setup, switch off Enable trigger. The schedule stays, it just doesn't fire; switch it back on when needed.
- 6On the list, each card says scheduled, manual or schedule off, and you can filter by that. A paused workflow never fires either.
Weekly: Mon–Fri at 08:00, Asia/Ho_Chi_Minh
Interval: every 3 hours, 08:00–20:00
One-time: tomorrow 09:00, switches itself off afterwards
Good to know
- A short interval over a long window means many runs a day, and every run costs credits.
- A paused workflow never fires its trigger.
Outcome: You know the three schedule kinds, can read the Next line on the header and card, and toggle the schedule without losing it.
Run history lists every run. This video tests a part of the graph with Run up to here, opens a failed run of another workflow to read the error, and clicks Retry from this task to start a new run at the failing step.
Use it when: When you need to test part of a workflow, or a step failed and you have fixed the cause.
Steps
- 1Run history lists every run: succeeded, failed, cancelled; started by hand or by schedule; when, and how long it took.
- 2You needn't run the whole workflow to test a part. Run up to here runs every step leading to this task and stops; Run from here runs it and everything after.
- 3A partial run only holds the chosen steps, and still lands in history with an Up to or From label so you can tell them apart.
- 4When a step fails the run stops there and selects the failing step. The panel shows the error, here a webhook answering 404.
- 5Fix the cause, then click Retry from this task: a new run starts at the failed step with the same input; the failed run stays in history.
- 6Each task's own history, including standalone runs, lives on the Tasks page. Next video: managing workflows.
Good to know
- Retry always creates a new run with the old input; the failed run stays in history.
- A partial run lands in history with an Up to or From label.
Outcome: You can read the run list, run part of the graph and retry a failed step without re-running everything.
Day-to-day upkeep of a workflow: edit name and description, pause and resume, take a task off the graph without losing it, spot shared tasks and delete a workflow.
Use it when: When the process changes, a workflow must pause for a while, or an unused one should go.
Steps
- 1Name and description can be edited any time from the pencil in the header, or the three-dot menu on the list.
- 2Pause locks both the Run button and the schedule, but keeps the graph and history. Resume and everything is back.
- 3Remove from workflow only takes the task off this graph. The task and its run history stay on the Tasks page and can be added back any time.
- 4Even a removal can be undone. A task that lives in several workflows carries a Shared label: change its settings in one place and it changes everywhere.
- 5Deleting a workflow removes its graph, schedule and run history. The tasks inside are not deleted; remove them on the Tasks page if you want them gone.
- 6Viewers can open and follow but not edit. The number of workflows you keep counts against your plan; deleting one frees a slot.
Good to know
- Remove from workflow only takes the task off this graph; the task and its history stay on the Tasks page.
- Deleting a workflow does not delete its tasks; remove them on the Tasks page if you want them gone.
Outcome: You know that pausing locks both Run and the schedule, can remove and undo removing a task, and delete a workflow the right way.
A template is a whole pre-built workflow: several tasks already linked. This video browses the four templates, looks at one template's optional parts, then creates the Scan booking email to Google Sheet workflow by filling in the Gmail account, Sheets account and spreadsheet.
Use it when: When your case matches a template: meeting notes, a daily report, a multi-source digest, scanning email into a sheet.
Steps
- 1A ready-made template is a whole workflow: several tasks already linked. Each card shows the chain of task types and what you must fill in.
- 2Four templates: meeting notes by email, a daily report with critique, a multi-branch digest, and scanning email into a spreadsheet. Search or filter by category.
- 3Click Use template: the Create from template dialog asks only for what the template cannot know. Fields marked optional can be left blank; the task needing them is left out and can be added later.
- 4For the email scan template: pick the Gmail account to read, the Google Sheets account, and paste the spreadsheet link to write to. The workflow name is pre-filled and editable.
- 5Create workflow: all three tasks and their links, including the True branch after the condition, appear at once. From here it edits like any other workflow.
- 6Each task's prompt is pre-written and editable. The scan task has Only new records on, so an email enters the sheet once and never again.
Good to know
- Leave an optional field blank and the task needing it is left out; the workflow is still created and you can add it later.
- Each task's prompt is pre-written and editable after creation.
Outcome: A three-step workflow created from a template, with links and the True branch in place, ready for a real run.
A real run of the workflow created from the template: the AI task reads Gmail with a read-only tool and extracts customer details, the condition takes the True branch, and a row lands in the spreadsheet. Run again at once to see Only new records skip the processed emails, then set an interval schedule.
Use it when: When an inbox receives bookings, orders or feedback and you want them in a spreadsheet automatically.
Steps
- 1The inbox holds two new booking emails. This template reads them, extracts the customer details and writes to the spreadsheet when there is something new.
- 2The scan task reads Gmail with a read-only tool and returns a two-row table. The Two new records badge means the system has memorised both emails.
- 3The condition passes because the result is not the No new bookings line, so the True branch runs: a row is appended to the spreadsheet.
- 4Open the spreadsheet: the new row holds the time, task name, extracted content and the run id for tracing back.
- 5Run again right away: the two old emails are dropped, the task answers no new bookings, the condition fails and the sheet step is skipped. No duplicate rows.
- 6To make it work on its own, set an interval: every hour during business hours. From then on new bookings land in the sheet with nobody clicking.
- 7Change the search keywords, the table columns or the target spreadsheet inside each task to fit your own work.
Good to know
- An email enters the sheet once thanks to Only new records; clear the memory on the Tasks page to read from scratch.
- Change the search keywords, columns or target spreadsheet inside each task.
Outcome: New bookings land in Google Sheets with no duplicates, and the workflow runs hourly in business hours once the schedule is on.
A large workflow created from a template, run for real: five web-search AI tasks in parallel, a compile step, a condition reading the alert level and an email. The video ends by showing how to change the topic by editing each branch's prompt.
Use it when: When you need a multi-angle digest every morning: markets, competitors, an industry.
Steps
- 1The digest template combines several AI tasks running in parallel. Only the sending account and recipients are required; the archive spreadsheet and the alert webhook are optional, and here we fill in the webhook.
- 2The graph you get: five research branches in parallel, one compile step, then the email; alongside it a condition reads the severity and only fires the webhook alert when there is a warning.
- 3Five web-search tasks run at once, each finishing at its own time. The compile step waits for all five results before it starts.
- 4The digest opens with two fixed-format lines so the condition after it can read the severity. The send step reports delivery to the recipient.
- 5The digest is already in the inbox: price, news, the technical view and three scenarios, sent from the connected Gmail account.
- 6A multi-branch digest costs more credits than a single task; see the total on Finish. Change the topic by editing each branch's prompt: stocks, an industry, competitors.
- 7Set a weekly trigger for every morning and the digest arrives on time. That concludes the Workflow videos.
Good to know
- A multi-branch digest costs more credits than a single task; see the total on Finish.
- The digest opens with two fixed-format lines so the condition after it can read the severity.
Outcome: A digest in the inbox on time every morning, and you know how to retarget it to your own topic.